


Blinded Eyes And Blinking Stars

by ToTheMax



Series: Number Mix-Its [5]
Category: The Walking Dead (Telltale Video Game)
Genre: Fairy Tale Elements, Gen, This is really just my excuse to write everyone as mythical woodland creatures, also aasim is just a brief appearance, im a simple gay can you blame me
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-04-09
Updated: 2020-04-09
Packaged: 2021-03-02 00:48:09
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,641
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23556310
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ToTheMax/pseuds/ToTheMax
Summary: Clementine foolishly wanders after a voice calling her name.[TWDG Mix-Its challenge: #1 + #20 = Clementine... in a fairy tale AU]
Series: Number Mix-Its [5]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1684795
Comments: 4
Kudos: 8





	Blinded Eyes And Blinking Stars

**Author's Note:**

> CJ: I'm waiting for someone do do the fairy tale au
> 
> Me, cracking my knuckles: my time has come

Another branch swayed as she let go, her footsteps crunching on dry autumn leaves. Her golden brown eyes glazed over the woodland, and her lungs were full of fresh air.

She heard it again. A faint voice, high and whispery.

_"Clementine…"_

"Yes?" She called out, immediately feeling foolish. She'd tried to respond before, but the voice had never spoken more than her name. She ducked her head to evade a low-hanging branch, plunging herself deeper into the forest's sun-dappled depths. 

From above, on a high branch, an owl peered at the girl passing by. The creature broke his large stare only for a moment to scratch under his wing. "She's just like the rest," he stated bluntly. "Why go through all this trouble?"

"Trouble?" The satyr sitting on the branch above leaned into her short-haired twin. "This is fun! Watching her amble around aimlessly, getting more and more lost in the Labrynth…"

Her twin scoffed and crossed her arms, hanging one leg over the branch. "I have to say, your crowing attracted her more than I thought it would."

"Who are you calling crow?" The satyr rolled her shoulder with a playful sneer. "Your singing scared away all the birds yesterday!"

"Both of you are morons," a raspier voice said, and a sleepy-looking sphinx lifted her head, blonde locks falling in front of murky green eyes. "You're not even giving her a challenge, just some wild goose chase she's going to give up on. Then, she goes back home." She raised one giant paw to rub the tire out of her face.

"Oh, like you can do any better, Vi." The cheerful satyr swung around, both legs hanging off the branch she and her sister sat on. "By all means, show us how to do it!"

"This is pointless," the owl groaned, and his form shifted to become more humanoid. His arms were replaced with his rounded brown wings, and his feet still held the furry talons of an owl, but his face was human to show his displeasure. "I need to get back home, anyway. The way you fauna act, Louis has likely started another one of his parties in our absence."

"And the way you dryad act, we cant have a fun night at all with you around," the long-haired satyr teased.

The dryad craned his neck to the satyrs. "Minerva, Sophie, come back soon. Tenn's likely getting restless."

"You got it, chief." Sophie gave a lazy salute and fixed the straps on her sleeveless top.

The sphinx rolled her eyes. "Have a safe flight, Aasim." She stretched one wing to graze against his as he nodded back. "Now, where were we?"

The satyrs flinched as Aasim took off, the gusts of wind blowing leaves in their face. Minerva eyed the sphinx with a raised eyebrow. "You were about to show us how to properly snag a human?"

 _"Clementine…!"_ Sophie called again, covering her mouth when the human on the ground whirled around to see where the voice was coming from. "She's so clueless!"

"And pretty," Minerva admitted, her mouth turning up the slightest of smirks. 

Violet gruffed, lashing her tail. "Pretty or not, she's a trespasser. Watch and learn."

" _Who_ is out there?" Clementine called, growing impatient. She reached under her cloak and drew her broadsword, holding it out in front of her with both hands. "Show yourself!"

_"As you wish."_

A large, heavy force slammed into the ground in front of her, causing her to yelp with alarm. The vibration of the earth shook her to her core, causing the sword to clatter to the ground among the leaves. She fell back, hitting the ground hard as she scrambled back from the towering figure cloaked in shadows. With the beast's arrival came a thick swathe of fog, blotting out the sunrays above and obscuring the forest from her view.

"A brave choice you've made, traveller, to come here," the rasp of a surprisingly light voice hissed, and the form came through the fog. It had a somewhat humanoid face, halfway covered by thick locks of blonde hair. Its body was that of a lion's, with grand avian wings outstretched from either side of its stocky stature. It glared down Clementine with not bloodlust, like she was expecting, but displeasure. Disappointment.

"Your choice, however brave it is, is also moronic. You dare step into my domain?" Violet leaned her head to the side, silently amused at the fear on the girl's face. _Minerva's right. This is a pretty human._

"I-I heard someone calling my name," Clementine explained, shakily getting to her feet. She made the. better decision to leave her sword on the ground, pulling at the collar of her shirt. "It sounded like they were in trouble, I only came to help." Now that she got a good look at the creature, she noted it to be considerably smaller than what she was expecting– only the size of a grown lion. 

"You answered the call of your name from the forest?" Violet asked, her tail twitching behind her. "Aren't there tales of monsters in the forest where you come from?"

"There aren't many tales of a sphinx," Clementine said, taking a brave step forward. "And most of it sounded like horror stories to keep me in bed as a child. I had no idea…"

Violet _tsk_ ed. "Well, you came into the forest to help, yes?" Clementine nodded. "A valiant reason to pass into my territory. I can assure you though, nobody is in need of help."

"Well- then who called my name?" Clementine asked, putting a hand on her hip. "It wasn't you, was it?"

Violet snuffed. "I don't know what you're talking about." She raised her head, catching Sophie's eye and giving a silent demand of _shut up before I feed you to the dire wolves_. 

"Human Clementine," she addressed, turning her attention back to the girl in front of her. "You've crossed the path of Violet. I am the defender of my forest, my duty is to protect it from trespassers like you."

"I-I didn't mean to trespass, Violet," Clementine stammered, stooping down and picking up her sword. "Look, I'll leave now, and–"

"No." Violet curled ber lip in a snarl. "Accidental or not, the only way you leave with your blood is if you pass my test."

Clementine stopped in her movements, her hand curled around her sword. "Y-Your test?"

"You will be given three questions." Violet sat down, ignoring a giggle from Sophie.

"Wow, three?" Her voice whispered in her ear. "You must _really_ like this human. Hear that, Minnie? You got competition!"

"Okay… three questions." Clementine sheathed her sword, patiently waiting for Violet to continue. She furrowed her eyebrows when she saw the reddening of her face. 

Violet shook her mane of hair out, growling as Sophie laughed at her embarrassment. "Three questions, yes. And for each, you will be given three chances to answer correctly. Three chances, for the three creatures I am made of."

"A bird, a lion, and a human," Clementine muttered, seemingly to herself. "Okay," she said with a nod. Her eyes were still nervous, her hand at the hilt of her sword, but Violet could sense the pull of curiosity from her, one that rendered her harmless.

Violet's eyes glazed over as she spoke her first riddle. _"It lives in the light, yet dies when light is shone upon it; everyone has it, and no one can lose it. What is it?"_ She blinked rapidly, focusing back on the human. 

Clementine looked down in concentration, feeling her heart beat faster when an answer didn't come. "Um… is it sight?"

"One can lose their sight." Violet stretched her wings out. "Two more chances."

Clementine gasped, looking into Violet's hazel eyes. She then looked up, trying to peer through the fog for an answer. "Um… it's…" Part of the fog broke, shining a beam of sun onto her skin. She looked down at her hands, eyes widening with the answer. 

"A shadow," she whispered. She moved one hand over the other, watching her shadow move in wonder. "The answer is... a shadow." She looked back up at Violet.

Violet was surprised at her determination– moreso, that she had correctly guessed the answer. _Usually the humans die to that one._ "That is correct," she said slowly. "Don't act so sure yet; you have two more questions left to answer."

Violet let her eyes glaze over as she spoke the second riddle. _"This instrument is the loveliest of all. It cannot be seen, it cannot be touched, yet its very sound can bring a kingdom to its knees. What is it?"_

Clementine hummed, kicking at the leaves on the ground. "It's very sound can bring a kingdom to its knees," she echoed in a murmur.

A memory came to her then; she was much younger. She was standing with her mother in a crowd, who were intently paying mind to the soon-to-be king as he gave a speech. She didn't know what it was about, but she remembered that there were tears shed and applause rung. She met Violet's eye again with confidence.

"A voice."

Violet's face softened with shock. "Hm. You came to that conclusion fast."

"Call it experience." Clementine smiled at the sphinx, stuffing her hands into the pockets of her breeches. "One more question, right?"

"Yes." Violet nodded with her own smirk, One more time her eyes gained a milky white overlay, and the fog around them grew thicker, nearly drowning them in its darkness.

_"You never know you have it until you lose it. It is the greatest pleasure and the worst torture. It can make you feel as light as a feather, and as heavy as the sea. What is it?"_

Clementine's heart pounded and shook the curls of her hair as a flood of memories washed back to her. Fire, screams, blood… And in a certain moment, silence, followed by her own sobbing.

She looked up to Violet, tears pooling in her eyes as she answered.

"Love."

The fog dispersed, inviting sunlight back into the forest.

Violet let out a heavy sigh as she watched the human swallow a lump in her throat, then look down at her boots. "...Correct." She raised her head with a proud smirk. "I admire your intelligence, Clementine." She stands up, holding one of her paws out. "You've passed my test. I can escort you back out of the forest, but you must never cross past the treeline once you go."

Clementine hesitated, then took her offer, in awe as just how small her hand was compared to Violet's paw. "Right. I'm sorry, I didn't know the forest belonged to anybody."

"Well, now you know." Violet started forward, practically pulling Clementine along the twisting path. What would have taken Clementine weeks on her own took just a couple minutes of wordless wandering.

Violet let go of Clementine's hand, staring out into the worn dirt path leading to a kingdom in the distance. "Run home, Clementine," she advised. "The sun will set soon."

Clementine nodded. "Thank you… for showing me the way." She paused, then gave a grateful pat on Violet's shoulder. "And for not killing me."

Violet chuckled, nudging Clementine out of the treeline and turning back into the forest. "Just don't make the mistake again."

She wasn't three steps back into her lounging spot before a sudden force tackled her to the ground. She roared, lashing a paw out, but a deft hand snatched it and planted a hoof into her neck, which ached even though her layers of fur.

"You _let her go_!?" Minerva exclaimed, digging her hoof deeper into Violet's mane. "What is _wrong_ with you!?"

Violet snarled, shifting her weight and bringing a back leg up to kick the satyr off her. "She answered all my riddles! She passed my test! I don't go back on my word."

Minerva paced in a circle a body's length away, icy eyes alight with rage. "Oh, don't give me that! You said you'd show us how to trap a human, not give it some quiz and let her off the hook!"

"Minnie, hey!" Sophie jumped down from the canopy, bracing herself. between the two fae. She faced her twin with her arms out. "Knock it off."

"Tell that to Violet!" Minnie glared the sphinx over Sophie's shoulder. "That human is gonna run back home and tell _everyone_ that she went into the forest and came out alive. Next thing you know, we're getting the entire kingdom frolicking in our land, and taking it for themselves!" She growled, flexing her hands as if they had claws. "What the hell were those riddles, anyway?"

"Don't," Violet rumbled, feeling a spark in her chest. 

"No, really! What were you thinking, giving her such easy questions?"

"Minnie," Sophie tried, but resigned when her sister stormed forward and shoved her aside.

"Don't assume you know better," Violet hissed, spreading her wings to appear bigger. Her tail lashed behind her angrily, nose wrinkled in a bare-tooth snarl.

"Oh, I do know better." Minerva bent low so she was nose-to-nose with the creature. "You're letting your human heart control your actions. Day after day, you're abandoning more of yourself to focus on those stupid—"

Violet roared, an avian shriek ringing in the noise as she launched herself at Minerva, using her massive claws to tear at her hide. Minerva screamed back, using her mighty legs to kick at Violet's soft underbelly.

 _"HEY!"_ Sophie tried to try them apart, but when she pulled Minerva off, Violet took the opportunity to lunge again with bared teeth. "Guys, _stop it_!"

Her cries fell on deaf ears. Violet and Minerva were a tangle of teeth, claws, fur, and blood. Violet beat her wings mercilessly until Minerva finally flew away from her, being kicked horizontal into a tree.

"YOU DON'T KNOW _ANYTHING_ ABOUT ME!" Violet shrieked, the splitting cry even hurting her own ears. She panted, feeling the sting of blood rolling down her flank, as well as tears rolling down her face. She did feel a twinge of satisfaction upon seeing Minerva flinch.

She took pride in her intimidation as she pounced on the satyr, pinning her neck between two long, bloodstained claws. "Quit acting like you do because of our history."

Minerva panted, her ribs pressing against Violet's pawpads with every sharp inhale. "A year isn't that long, Violet. You can't act like you're someone new after only that long."

"I don't have to act. I am."

"There you go again," Minerva scoffed between gasps for air. "Keep telling yourself that. You and I both know the truth."

Violet dug her claws deeper beside Minerva's neck. "The only truth you know are the lies you tell." She drew back, holding Minerva in a grip by the throat. "You will _never_ know the truth about me, not as long as you live like this!"

"Violet!" Sophie screamed, and when Violet turned she felt the visceral terror emanating from her stature. "Get off of her, now! _Please,_ just stop, the both of you!"

Both fae paused in all movement before Violet begrudgingly let Minerva stand. Neither said anything; they didn't have to.

Minerva brushed a scuff on her shoulder, wiping fur out of her wound. Then, she turned her back to Violet and leaped off into the forest. 

Sophie looked to Violet, the fear ebbing out of her eyes. "Both of you need to quit fighting like this," she spoke, and her voice was wavy. "You have your disagreements, yeah, but _this_ is what takes it too far. One of these days, you're _going_ to kill her."

Violet snarled, turning away from the satyr. "She shouldn't have put the target on her chest."

With that, she bounded off in the opposite direction, unfurling her wings and taking to the sky.

**Author's Note:**

> Okay i tried to make it as fairy tale-ish as possible but I kinda got carried away with he fact Violet is a sphinx okay I had the idea and ran with it
> 
> This is the longest thing I've done for this challenge yet omg I'm such a pro


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